After only one day back at home, I took off on a road trip with my friend Kamry to see the Coromandel and Northland. We started the day at Lonely Bay which was true to its name. Only two other people were there. The sandstone formations and chunky sand were especially beautiful.
Next we drove a little ways down the road to see Cathedral Cove. To get there, you have to take a shuttle up to the trail and then walk about 45 min to the cove. This is a major tourist destination but for good reason. The beach had stunning white (almost pink) sand and more sandstone formations. In particular there is a large arch/cave you walk through to get to the other side of the beach and it does feel like a Cathedral in a way. We stayed there for a few hours then ventured back to explore the other two coves along the route.
We ended the day at Hot Water Beach which is famous for the hot water that rises out of the ground at low tide. Geothermal activity causes areas of the beach to heat up and if you dig in the sand, you can reach scalding hot water, hot enough to burn your feet! Most of the tourists were digging very far up the beach, but we noticed a few people waiting closer to the shore. This turned out to be the right strategy because at true low tide, you didn't need any shovels to find the hot water. You could just twist your feet into the sand and feel the warmth! Very cool!
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